Define Humanity
by NovemberMurray
Summary: He reached through the layers of the world, back and back to another mind that was calling out, "Veda?" and they collided.- If Tieria had known enough about the future and he could save Neil, how would his life be different? AU Follows Tieria and Neil in the time between S1 and S2. Slash Tieria/Lockon(Neil) Rated T for safety.


Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam 00

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Define Humanity by November Murray

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Chapter 1: Honesty

.o0o.

"I didn't expect to find you out here."

Tieria turned. "Lockon."

"What are you doing?" The brunet asked. Tieria turned away without even a shrug and looked back up at the moon, floating above the pacific. He had discarded his sweater on a piece of driftwood up the beach along with his shoes and rolled his pants up to his knees. It did them little good because each wave in the small cove splashed water up his thighs and soaked the tan fabric.

"Fine don't tell me," Lockon said with a shrug. "You should be getting some rest though, we'll be heading to the elevator in a few hours."

"Two and a half."

"All the more reason to rest up."

"What about you?"

"Couldn't sleep if I wanted to."

They were silent for a minute listening to the wind in the trees, the waves and the insects that lived on the secluded island.

"I used to hate earth. I preferred the simplicity of space. From space everything is so clear where as here things are…"

"Messy," Lockon suggested. Tieria nodded.

"But there are things about earth I will miss, like this."

Lockon sat down on the driftwood and on a whim pulled off his boots. He rolled up his pants and left his vest beside Tieria's pink sweater and waded into the waves.

"Damn, Tieria, this water is freezing." He noted and shivered, digging his toes into the sand. Tieria chuckled.

"You'll become numb in a moment."

"That's not a good thing you know." Lockon chided as he came up beside his companion. Under his feet he saw movement through the water as fish and small crabs scurried away.

"Sorry." Lockon said as he watched the now lifeless water lap at his pants.

"They'll come back if you stay still."

They stood in compassionate silence for a while watching the night pass overhead and the moon rising.

"It's much prettier from down here," Lockon said softly.

"What?"

"The moon. When I first saw it up close it felt… desolate. All of space seemed that way."

"And now?"

"I don't think my opinions have changed much. I prefer things a bit messy."

"Clearly."

"Oi, what's that supposed to mean?" He splashed Tieria lightly as the purple hair man chuckled. "You laugh more than you used to." Tieria froze. "And back there, in the hanger, you spoke for yourself instead of for Veda."

"What's your point?" Tieria asked blankly, a small frown on his face.

"I think it's a good, the changes in you. Makes you more fun to be around." Lockon has only just finished his sentence when cold water droplets slashed onto his back all the way up to his neck. He yelled out in surprise at Tieria's retaliation. Tieria just laughed.

"Hey, hey, if that's how you want to play." Lockon growled and without thinking tackled this smaller man, plunging them both into the water. Tieria yelped before they both hit the water and then everything was silent and Lockon was staring into the underwater moonlit world at their feet. He sat up quickly, gasping from the sudden cold pulling away his body heat. Tieria came up with a similar noise and some sputtering.

"What was that for?" He demanded angrily. Lockon just looked at him. His cheeks twitched, his lips tightened, his eyes tensed. Tieria glowered and Lockon gave in and laughed.

"What?" Tieria demanded.

"Your glasses are all tangled in your hair."

Tieria reached up to feel the tangled strands of his hair wrapped around the wire frames. All of his hair was swept to one said by the water and it was curling in the humidity. Tieria ground his teeth and closed his eyes as he tried not to imagine how ridiculous he looked at the moment.

"Let me give you a hand." Lockon said leaning over. "Here you go," He handed Tieria a long piece of seaweed and chuckled at the Mister's horrified reaction. "It won't kill you. And," he passed over the glasses, now free of purple hair. Lockon ruffled Tieria's hair just to see the other man grimace and smirked.

"Race ya," he said with his charming grin.

"What for?"

"First to the hanger gets the shower first." Lockon jumped up, splashing Tieria again.

"Wait, Lockon!" Tieria yelled after him the growled under his breathe, "cheater." But the effect was utterly ruined by his smile.

The hot water of the shower did feel good after the cold ocean. Lockon was out moments after Tieria made it back to the hanger so there was enough water left in the small tank. When Tieria came out, the living space attached to the hanger was empty. He shrugged it off and sat down at the computer, finishing up the preparations for the Gundam's return to space.

A mug tapped against the table as it was set beside him.

"Hot Chocolate." Lockon said with a smile.

"Why?"

"Always tastes better when you're cold."

Tieria eyed the cup then picked it up and sipped the sweet drink.

"What? No comment on calorie intake?"

Tieria made a dismissive noise and took another sip of his drink. Lockon leaned against the table and drank his own.

"Lockon."

"It's Neil."

"Neil." Tieria said the foreign word and it rolled awkwardly off his tongue. Lockon chuckled humorlessly.

"How funny. It used to be strange to be called Lockon, now my own name sounds wrong as well."

"Is it important, your real name?"

"I used to think it was. I don't like to lie."

"You truly are a hypocrite."

"So I am but at least I'm honest about that."

"Humans, you can be so dedicated to your convictions and yet walk around contradicting them."

"It's not that simple."

"'Messy.'"

"Ah, something like that."

"I will continue to use your codename, Lockon Stratos."

"Fine by me. Do what you like."

"It's not—" Tieria stopped himself. Given the current circumstances it was pointless to continue using code names but he still didn't feel comfortable calling Lockon by a different name. Instead of explaining he picked up his cup and sipped the hot drink. The computer beeped and a confirmation came up on the screen.

"Preparations are complete, we can leave on schedule."

"Don't wake Setsuna yet, let him sleep."

"Of course."

"Crazy kid pushes himself too hard. It's admirable, the way he throws himself at what he believes without restraint, the fool."

"There will be more than enough for him to do once we rendezvous with Ptolomy."

"That's where it will all take place, Gundam fighting Gundam."

"Yes." Tieria gripped his cup tightly.

"Hey, don't worry about it. It's all part of the plan right?"

"I do not see how that is supposed to ease away the reality of our situation. Besides it is hardly right for you to tell me not to worry when you are also too restless to sleep."

"You caught me there."

They were silent again, and uncomfortable tense silence like the moment before the wave crashes.

"Tieria."

"Ah."

"Why are you doing this? What is your reason for fighting?"

"To complete Aolia's plan." Tieria said without hesitation.

"Is that all?"

"Ah."

Silence lapsed again.

"No," Tieria corrected himself. "I want to see it for myself, humanity in that future he dreamed of."

"You believe in it then?"

"Don't you? Isn't that why you are fighting?"

"Ah, I want to believe in it. I will fight for it even if I don't live to see it. I'm just surprised to hear you say you believe in something irrational."

"Do all the Misters think so little of me?"

"Hey, hey, I didn't say that."

"Lockon…Neil, as someone who dislikes liars," Tieria bit his lip and forced himself to look up into Lockon's eyes, "What do you think of me?" Neil blinked once at the question. The time seemed to drag for Tieria before Lockon smiled. Then he did something perplexing. Tieria's mind was still trying to figure it out by the time it was over.

_He… kissed me_. It had been gentle, short, and one sided. Neil took Tieria's bottom lip between his own in a short caress and then pulled away.

"That was the first time," was all Tieria managed to say to Lockon's confused and worried expression.

"Really?" Lockon tried to hold back his grin. "Makes me kind of happy. Now you can never forget me."

"Don't be ridiculous. I have many other reasons to remember you." Tieria put down his cup on the table and stood. He buried his hand in Lockon's curls pulling their lips together for a true kiss. Lockon recovered from his own surprise faster than Tieria had and pulled the smaller man close. Tieria responded, deepening the kiss. Lockon tried not to smile as he taught Tieria the pleasures of physical human contact.

Footsteps outside pulled them both from the strange primal place they had been and into reality. By the time the door slid open Tieria was back in his seat and Lockon was walking away with his cup in hand, half turned away. Setsuna saw nothing out of the ordinary and went about finding himself some breakfast.

.o0o.

Smuggling their machines into the colony cargo, the elevator train ride, the rendezvous with Ptolomy, the preparations for the coming battle all kept Tieria and Lockon busy. The next time they had a moment to speak alone it was brief. Tieria was preoccupied, Veda being the most important thing on his mind. More than anything he wanted to consult with the mainframe. It had always eased his mind before. Now he faced losing it completely.

"Something on your mind?" A voice and the sound of the door opening interrupted his thoughts.

"Lockon Stratos"

"Don't worry so much. Even if we can't rely on Veda's backup we've got the Gundams and Miss Sumeragi's tactical forecasts." Lockon smiled easily.

"You must not be aware of the crimes she committed in the past."

"I know." Lockon cut him off. "But anyone can make a mistake. In her case it just happened to be a very big one. But Miss Sumeragi chose to fight in order to atone for her past. And she drinks to dilute the regret she has in her heart. And the only reason she can do that is because that's what humans do."

"Human…" Tieria wondered if he would ever understand what it truly meant to be human and if he was truly so different. If no one knew what he was… "Lockon are you saying you know about me?" Tieria felt something in his chest clench uncomfortably. Allelujah took that moment to interrupt them.

"Guys, Sumeragi just gave us orders to stand by in the containers."

"Roger," Lockon acknowledged. He turned back to Tieria with a serious face.

"Tieria, let me say this much. Now that the tide is turned against us it'll be more critical than ever that the four Gundams cooperate with each other. I'm counting on you." The clenched feeling eased but did not go away. Tieria swallowed his personal concerns.

"You should be saying that to Setsuna F Seiei," He corrected Lockon who laughed. Tieria truly relaxed at the sound.

"Yeah, you're right about that." Lockon said with a smile. "Coming?"

"Yes." Tieria glided toward the door but before he got there Lockon caught his arm.

"Lockon?" Tieria couldn't form a complete thought before Lockon had taken his face in his free hand and brought their lips together fleetingly.

"For luck."

"Luck is an irrational construct."

"Then for my luck." Lockon said with a small smile before he left heading in the opposite direction Tieria was. Tieria hovered for a moment in the absence of gravity and lifted his fingers to his lips. He shook off thoughts of kisses and warm hands and set off toward the container and Virtue. His mind was already racing with questions about Veda and the plan, the last thing he needed was physical distractions.

.o0o.

Tieria felt the link as it was severed. It felt like the sudden plunge into the icy ocean except there was no coming back up. There was only the cold, mercilessness and hostility of space.

Has Veda abandoned me? Have I been cast aside? Has this all been part of the plan to raise us only to be destroyed? Could that be Aolia's plan? Why? What have I done wrong? Where did I diverge from the plan? Veda?

Then something, vague and far off called to him, getting closer.

Who's there?

Who are you?

Tieria Erde.

How do you know me?

It's me.

Who?

You.

Then they collided.

Tieria gave a shuddering gasp. Light flickered across the screens of his cockpit, running on the last of the energy. He knew what had happened, what he had done, what was going to happen, what he was going to do yet. Joy, despair, anger, desperation, elation, pleasure, pain… the emotions cascaded over his mind in such a discordant tumult he let them out the only way he knew. He screamed at the emptiness of space.

"Lockon," he whimpered when the last echoes had faded. "All because you protected me, all because of this…"

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Author's Note: From here on this is AU. There will still be canon stuff for a while but the difference will be apparent when it happens. This is a multi chapter story and I've completed it at 111 pages and more than 50 thousand words. Most of the chapters still require some editing, which I'll do before each posting. I'll keep posting chapters if there's interest. Thanks for reading. -Ember


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